The economic viability of coal is ever decreasing. Without public financial support many coal investments are doomed to fail. Yet several institutions are still willing to finance an energy source that wrecks our climate, damages our health and wastes our money.
To help bring about a world beyond coal, we investigate and promote a socially responsible transition while exposing the economic, legal, social and environmental risks of coal power.
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We provide updates in English from the Balkans and other coal regions.
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Just transition
No one should be left behind when we reconstruct our world into one driven by clean energy. Working on just transition brings all actors who believe in fair regional redevelopment to the same table: unions, industry, public administration, governments, civil society and others sharing this goal.
Coal projects
Just transition
Working on just transition brings all actors who believe in fair regional redevelopment to the same table: unions, industry, public administration, governments, civil society and others sharing this goal. They should be working together to find what is best for their regions and communities, from creating good quality jobs to identifying sustainable alternatives.
Rovinari unit 7, Romania
The Romanian Government has been negotiating for several years with the Chinese Government to build a new 600 MW unit at the lignite power plant in Rovinari, Gorj County. The new unit would be built on the site of Units 1 and 2, currently decommissioned. A new up and running plant would pollute the whole region for at least 40 more years, a coal plant’s average lifespan.
Gacko II, Bosnia and Herzegovina
State-owned utility Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske, together with China Machinery and Engineering Corporation (CMEC) and Emerging Markets Power Fund, plans to build a new 350 MW lignite power plant in Gacko, near the town’s existing plant, and in December 2017 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed to move the project forward.
Latest news
Dobrovoľne behali okolo uhoľnej elektrárne. Uprostred panorámy sa objavil obrovský hríb dymu, hovorí bežec
Bankwatch in the media | 14 January, 2021Skupina bežcov sa rozhodla zabehnúť trasu okolo uhoľnej elektrárne v Severnom Macedónsku, aby poukázali na znečistenie ovzdušia v okolí.
Read moreRunners raise the alarm about air pollution from coal power during inaugural Lung Run
Blog entry | 22 December, 2020One of the leading reasons for the extremely polluted air are the outdated and substandard coal-fired power plants in the region. The 16 plants operating in the Western Balkan countries emit as much sulphur dioxide and dust pollution as the entire fleet of coal plants in the EU.
Read moreTime to end the damaging cycle of land, surface and groundwater pollution in Tuzla
Blog entry | 21 December, 2020There are few things one can be sure of in life, but the constant anxiety communities near Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Tuzla power plant experience is one of them.
Read moreRelated publications
Pointers for the EBRDs forthcoming mining sector strategy
Policy comments | 20 November, 2010 | Download PDFThe document summarises the goals on which, according to Bankwatch, a future EBRD mining sector strategy needs to be based if the EBRD wants to support sustainable development. It includes specific recommendations to help ensure that EBRD investments in the mining sector bring real benefits for communities, avoid environmental and social harm, reduce CO2 emissions and do not increase countries’ dependence on commodities.
Comments on the Environmental Impact Assessment of Sostanj thermal power plant project
Policy comments | 15 February, 2010 | Download PDFThese comments by Slovenian NGO Focus – Association for Sustainable Development outlines concerns regarding the Sostanj project’s financial picture and its compliance with the climate and energy objectives of Slovenia. They also express serious doubts about the actual necessity of the project.
